Wire wrapping tool



June 23, 1970 w. D. BOHANNON, JR 3,51

WIRE WRAPPING TOOL QFiled Sept. 1, 1967 7 Sheets-Sheet l l N VE'N 713/ LU. I1 EDHHNNUN J?- J 23, 1970 w. D. BOHANNON. JR 3,516,140

WIRE WRAPPING TOOL Filed Sept. 1, 1967 7 Sheets$heet 2 J ne 23, 1970 I w. D. BOHANNON, JR 3,516,140

WIRE WRAPPING TOOL J w. D. BOHANNON, JR 3,

1970 WIRE WRAPPING TOOL Filed Sept. 1, 1967 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 39 Q F: 3 Q i I] Q g I \1 =2; j a r M 4 l QQ MQ w n\ s x g) L is) $3 u w w 09 0% Q Q I & j:

"Q Q f .3:

a \Q/ Q 0\ W- D. BOHANNON, JR

J WIRE WRAPPING TOOL 7 Sheets-Sheet '7 Filed Sept. 1, 1967 United States Patent US. Cl. 29-203 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A tool for wrapping the end of a wire on a terminal has three concentric elongated members with the two inner members having aligned transverse slots formed therethrough for receiving the end of a wire. The innermost member is moved upward with respect to the other members to lay the end of the wire longitudinally within a cavity in the tool. Upon lowering of the tool, the end of a terminal is received in the cavity and engages an element which slides upward with the cavity to prevent the end of the wire from engaging the terminal within the cavity.

GOVERNMENT CONTRACT The invention herein claimed was made in the course of, or under contract with the United States Army.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention This invention relates to tools for wrapping the ends of wires on terminals. Such tools may be incorporated in small, hand-operated apparatus or in automatic wire wrapping apparatus to make wire connections between large numbers of terminals. In both the manual and the automatic apparatus, the end of a wire must be received and captured by the tool in position to be wrapped on a terminal received by the tool. The receiving and capturing of the end of the wire must be reliable and in such a manner that many wraps may be made within a short period of time.

Description of the prior art Many wire wrapping tools have been developed in the prior art for wrapping the end of a wire on a terminal. Examples of prior art tools are: C. N. Hickman et al. Pat. 2,585,010 which was issued Feb. 12, 1952 and is assigned to Bell Telephone Laboratories, Inc.; F. Reck Pat. 2,743,502 which was issued on May 1, 1956, and is as signed to Bell Telephone Laboratories, Inc.; and I. O. Etchison, Jr. et al. Pat. 3,246,381 which issued Apr. 19, 1966, and is assigned to Western Electric Company, Inc.

Generally, the end of the wire is received or captured in a longitudinal passageway which terminates in an opening adjacent to a terminal receiving recess in the end of the tool. When a terminal is received in the recess and the tool is rotated, the end of the wire is wrapped on the terminal as the end is withdrawn from the passageway. In order to form a tight wrap, the passageway has a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of the wire such that the wire is bent through a relatively small radius of curvature as it is withdrawn from the passage to produce tension on the wire being wrapped. In some prior art tools, the end of the wire is inserted directly into the longitudinal passageway. Due to the small diameter of the passageway, the insertion of the wire is time consuming for the manual type apparatus and requires complex wire feeding mechanism for the automatic apparatus.

Another type of commonly used tool utilizes two cooperating elements which are separated in a first relative position to allow the placing of the wire between the ele- "ice ments and which are closed in a second relative position to capture the wire in a longitudinal passageway formed between the elements. Generally, the end of the wire is left free in this type of tool, and as the tool rotates, the end may be bent which results in varying tension and breakage of the wire as the end of the wire is pulled through the passageway.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention, a tool for wrapping the end of a wire on a terminal has three concentric elongated members which are relatively slidable with respect to each other. The end of the wire is inserted through aligned transverse slots formed through the inner and middle members whereupon the outer member moves downward with respect to the middle member to capture the wire in a longitudinal passageway formed between the outer and middle members in position to be guided around the terminal as the assembly is rotated. The inner member is raised with respect to the middle member to place the end of the wire fully within the slot formed in the middle member to prevent the end of the wire from being bent as the tool rotates.

Another feature of the invention incorporates an element which is slidably mounted in a terminal receiving recess and the slot in the middle member. When a terminal is received in the recess, the element slides upward within the slot to hold the end of the wire away from the terminal to prevent bending of the free end of the wire.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevation view of an automatic wire wrapping apparatus which utilizes wire wrapping tools in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of two wire wrapping assemblies supporting the wire wrapping tools of the ap paratus shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an isomtric view of a terminal board on which wire connections have been made by the apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is an isometric view, partly in cross-section, showing the pair of wire wrapping tools and mechanism for feeding and stripping the insulation from the ends of a section of wire of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIGS. 58 are elevation views showing different positions during the operation of the tools and mechanism shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 9 is an isometric view, partly in cross-section, showing another embodiment of wire wrapping tools and wire feeding and stripping mechanism which may be substituted for the tools and mechanism shown in FIG. 4.

FIGS. 10 and 11 are elevation views showing different positions during the operations of the tools and mechanism in FIG. 8.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring first to FIG. 3, there is shown a terminal board 15 having a plurality of terminals 16 mounted thereon. Wire connections 17, 18 and 19 may be made between certain of the terminals 16 by a pair of wrapping tools 20 and 21 (FIG. 4) incorporated in the automatic wrapping apparatus shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 4, the wrapping tool 20 has a shaft 23 which is longitudinally slidable within a spindle 24, an inner sleeve 25 which is longitudinally slidable on the spindle 24, and an outer sleeve 26 which is longitudinally slidable on the inner sleeve 25. The tool 21 contains a similarly arranged shaft 28, spindle 29, inner sleeve 30, and outer sleeve 31.

Referring to FIG. 2, the tool 20 is mounted by a pair of brackets 33 and 34 on a head 35. The tool 21 is rotatably mounted by similar brackets (not shown) on a head 36. The shaft 23 is rotatably mounted in an arm 39 connected to a piston rod 38 extending from an air cylinder 40 mounted on the head 35 for longitudinally moving the shaft 23 within the spindle 24. The inner sleeve 25 is rotatably mounted in an arm 41 which is connected to a piston rod 42 extending from an air cylinder 43 mounted in the head 35 for longitudinally moving the inner sleeve 25 on the spindle 24. Similarly, the outer sleeve 26 is non-rotatably mounted on an arm 45 connected to a piston rod 46 extending from an air cylinder 47 mounted in the head 35 for longitudinally moving the outer sleeve 26 over the inner sleeve 25. Similar air cylinders, piston rods, and arms are provided in the head 36 for longitudinally moving the shaft 28 within the spindle 29, for longitudinally moving the inner sleeve 30 on the spindle 29 and for longitudinally moving the outer sleeve 31 on the inner sleeve 30.

A pinion 50 is mounted on the spindle 24 and meshes with a gear 51 driven by motor 52 which is mounted on the head 35. The spindle 24, the shaft 23, and the inner sleeve 25 have mating longitudinal flat surfaces (not shown) such that they may not rotate relative to each other. The motor 52 rotates the gear 51, the pinion 50, the spindle 24, the shaft 23, and the inner sleeve 25 while the outer sleeve 26 remains stationary. A similar motor 53 and gear 56 are mounted on the head 36 such that the gear 56 meshes with a pinion 58 mounted on the spindle 29 of the tool 21. Also, the spindle 29, the shaft 28, and the inner sleeve 30 have mating flat portions such that they rotate together while the outer sleeve 31 remains stationary.

Referring to FIG. 5, the shaft 23 has a transverse slot 54 and the spindle 24 has a transverse slot 55 for receiving a wire 57 when the slots 54 and 55 are aligned. Similar slots 60 and 61 are formed in the respective shafts 2 8 and spindle 29 for receiving the wire 57. After the insulation has been severed and stripped from respective ends of the wire 57, the shafts 23 and 28 are raised to place the bared ends of wire completely within the respective slots 55 and 61 of the spindles 24 and 29. FIG. 8 shows the shaft 28 in its raised position and a bared end of the wire 57 completely within the slot 61 of the spindle 29.

As shown in FIG. 5, the spindle 29 of the tool 21 has a longitudinal recess or bore 69 extending from the slot 61 and terminating in a beveled opening 70 in the end of the spindle 29 for receiving a terminal. A cylindrical element 71, having wings 72 and 73, is slidably supported within the bore 69 and grooves 68 (FIG. 8) formed in the side Walls of the slot 61 for guiding and holding a stripped end of wire away from a terminal received in the recess 69 and slot 61. The spindle 24 of the tool 20 contains a similar bore 63 terminating in a beveled opening 64 in the end of the spindle for receiving a terminal. Also, a cylindrical element 65, having wings 66 and 67, is similarly slidably supported Within the bore 64, and grooves (not shown), formed in the side walls of the slot 55.

The outer sleeve 31 of the tool 21 has a longitudinal slot 75 formed in the side and extending to the end thereof, such that when the sleeve 31 is moved downward with respect to the spindle 29, the wire 57 is captured between the inner wall of the sleeve 31 and the end portion of the spindle 29, as shown in FIG. 5, with the free end of the -wire extending through the slots 60, 61 and 75 as shown in FIG. 5. The outer sleeve 26 of the tool 20 contains a similar slot 76.

Referring to FIG. 6, the inner sleeve 30 of the tool 21 has a longitudinal groove 78 extending to the end of the sleeve 30 where the groove terminates in a cutting edge for cooperating with the wing 72 to sever and partially strip the insulation from the end of the wire 57. A longitudinal slot 79 is formed in the side of the sleeve 30 opposite to the groove 78 for receiving the free end of the wire when the sleeve 30 is lowered over the spindle 4 29. Referring to FIG. 5, the inner sleeve 25 of the tool 20 has a longitudinal groove '81 and a longitudinal slot 82 similar to the groove 78 and slot 79 of the inner sleeve 30.

Referring to FIG. 4, an insulation stripping assembly 107 is slidably mounted on an extension 115 of a member 129 (FIG. 2) which supports the head 36. An air cylinder 108 mounted in the assembly 107, has a piston rod 109 which projects into a cavity 106 of the assembly 107 for gripping the insulation on the end of the wire 57. Referring to FIG. 2, an arm 114, connected to the assembly 107 is pivotally mounted on the extension 115. An air cylinder 116 is mounted in the housing 120 (FIG. 1) for pivoting the arm 1-14 to raise the assembly 107 and pull the insulation from the end of the wire 57 as shown in FIG. 7. A vacuum duct 112 is provided in the extension 115 for removing the stripped insulation.

As shown in FIG. 4, a wire feeding assembly 85 has a passageway 86 through which the wire 57 is fed from a spool 84 (FIG. 2). A friction wheel 87, driven by a reversible motor 88, is rotatably mounted above the passageway 86. A capstan wheel 90 is rotatably mounted on a piston 91 extending from an air cylinder 92 mounted in the assembly 85 below the wheel 87 for forcing the Wire 57 against the friction wheel 87.

A stripping assembly 94 is slidably mounted on the wire feeding assembly 85 and has a passageway 95 which may be aligned with the passageway 86. A cutter 102 is slidably mounted between the wire feeding assembly 85 and the stripping assembly 94 for cooperating with the opening of the passageway 86 to sever the wire 57. The cutter 102 is moved by a piston rod 103 projecting from an air cylinder 104 mounted on the assembly 85. An air cylinder 96, mounted in the assembly 94, has a projectable piston rod 97 which may be forced against the wire in the passageway 95 to grip the insulation thereon. After the inner sleeve 25 has lowered to sever the insulation on the wire 57, the assembly 94 is moved upward by a lever 99 (FIG. 2) pivoted on the assembly 85 by an air cylinder to pull the insulation completely from the end of the wire 57. A vacuum duct 111 is provided in the assembly 85 for removing the stripped insulation.

Referring to FIG. 1, the heads 35 and 36 are mounted within a housing which is rotatably supported by a frame 121 for rotation about an axis through the tool 20. The housing 120 is selectively rotatable by a rack and pinion arrangement 122 driven by an indexing fluid cylinder 123. The terminal board 15, having the terminals 16 thereon, is placed on a table 126 beneath the housing 120. Suitable facilities are provided for indexing the table 126 in a horizontal plane along transverse X and Y coordinates. A numerical control console 127 is provided for controlling the sequence of operation of the automatic wire wrapping apparatus.

As shown in FIG. 2, the head 36 is slidably mounted on a member 129 for vertical movement. An air cylinder 130 has a piston rod which projects against the member 129 such that the downward force of the head 36 and tool 21 is reduced during the wrapping of an end of wire on a terminal received by the tool 21. The member 129 is slidably mounted on a block 131 for vertical movement. A plurality of serially connected hydraulic cylinders 132 are connected between the block 131 and the member 129 for moving the member 129 to a vertical position determined by the control console 127. The block 131 is slidably mounted on horizontal rods 133 mounted in the housing 120 (FIG. 1). A plurality of hydraulic cylinders 134, serially connected between the housing 120 and the block 131 may be selectively actuated by the control console 127 to move the head 36 to a selected horizontal position with respect to the head 35.

The head 35 is mounted upon a member 137 for vertical movement. An air cylinder 138 has a piston rod which projects against the member 137 for reducing the weight of the head 35 and tool 20 when the tool 20 receives a terminal and wraps an end of a wire on the terminal. The member 137 is slidably mounted on a projection 139 of the housing 120 for vertical movement. A serial arrangement of hydraulic cylinders (not shown) is connected between the projection 139 and the member 137 for controlling the vertical position of the member 137 in the same manner as the air cylinders 132 control the vertical position of the member 129.

Referring to FIG. 5, the cylindrical elements 65 and 71 could be eliminated and the shafts 23 and 28 made longer to extend through the ends of the spindles 24 and 29. In this case, terminal receiving recesses would be located in the ends of the shafts 23 and 28.

OPERATION Referring to FIGS. 4, 5, 6 and 7, a cycle of operation of the wire wrapping tools 20 and 21 and insulation stripping assemblies 94 and 107 is described. Initially, the tools 20 and 21 and the insulation stripping assemblies 94 and 107 are in their positions as shown in FIG. 4 with the tool 21 directly over a selected terminal. Wire is fed by operation of the wire fed motor 88 and the capstan air cylinder 92 through the passageways 86 and 95, the slots 54 and 55 of the tool 20, and slots 60 and 61 of the tool 21 into the opening 106 of the insulation stripping assembly 1 07.

The outer sleeve 31 of the tool 21 is then lowered to capture the wire 57 between the inner wall of the sleeve 31 and the spindle 70 as shown in FIG. 5. The lowering of the sleeve 31 bends the free end of the wire 57 against the upper wall of the opening 106 whereupon the air cylinder 108 is actuated to grip the insulation on the free end of the wire. Next, the inner sleeve 30 is lowered, as shown in FIG. 6, whereupon the opening of the groove 78 in the end of the sleeve 30 cooperates with the wing 72 of the element 71 to sever and partially strip the insulation from the end of the wire 57. After the insulation is severed, the insulation stripping assembly 107 is raised to completely pull the insulation 011 of the end of the wire 57. The stripped insulation is removed through the vacuum duct 112 (FIG. 7).

The shaft 28 is then raised to the position shown in FIG. 8 to place the bare end of the wire 57 completely within the slot 61 of the spindle 29. Upon lowering of the tool 21 over a terminal 16, the top of the terminal 16 engages the element 71, raising the element 71 within the grooves 68 of the slot 61. The wing 72 of the element 71 guides and holds the bared end of the wire 57 in the groove 78 away from the terminal 16 to prevent engagement of the bared end of the wire 57 with the terminal 16 and bending of the bared end of the wire 57 which results in uneven tension or breakage of the wire during wrapping. The tool 21 is first rotated to wrap the bared end of the wire 57 onto the terminal 16 and then raised from the terminal 16 by upward movement of the head 36.

In order to lay wire on the terminal board 15, the outer sleeve 26 of the tool 20 is lowered to form a passageway between the sleeve 26 and spindle 24 for directing the wire toward the terminal board 15. The table 126 (FIG. 1) and terminal board 15 are then moved in X and Y coordinates, and wire is fed by the wire feeding assembly 85 to lay the wire in a pattern on the terminal board 15 as shown by the pattern of the wire connection 18 (FIG. 3). When the tool 20 is positioned directly over a desired terminal 16, the motor 88 may be reversed to take up slack in the wire 57 whereupon wire 57 is severed by the cutter 102. Subsequently, the Outer sleeve 26, the insulation gripping cylinder 96, the inner sleeve 25, the insulation stripping assembly 94 and the shaft 23 are operated in the same manner as the tool 21 and assembly 107 are operated to strip the insulation from the severed end of the wire 57 and place the bared end of wire fully within the slot 55 of the spindle 24. Upon lowering the tool 20 over the terminal 16, the element 65 raises in the slot 55 to hold the bared end of wire 57 away from the 6 terminal 16. Rotation of the tool 20 completes the wire connection 18 between the selected terminals 16. Upon raising of the head 35 and tool 20 from the terminal board 15, the wire wrapping apparatus is ready for another cycle of operation.

The tools 20 and 21 may be operated in an alternate sequence to produce the strap wire connection 17. The wire 57 is fed through the respective slots 55 and 61 of the spindles and the respective slots 54 and 60 of the shafts 23 and 28. The outer sleeve 31, inner sleeve 30, insulation stripping assembly 107 and shaft 28 are operated to strip the insulation from the end of the wire 57 and place the bared end of wire fully within the slot 61 of the tool 21. The table 126 and terminal board 15 are moved in X and Y coordinates to position a selected terminal beneath the tool 20. Next, the tool 21 is moved horizontally with respect to tool 20 and the housing rotated about the tool 20 to position the tool 21 over a selected terminal. As the tool 21 is moved with respect to tool 20, wire is pulled through the wire feeding assembly 85 and the tool 20. The wire 57 is then severed by the cutter 102 and the insulation on the severed end of wire stripped and the bared end of wire placed within the tool 20. The tools 20 and 21 are now simultaneously lowered and rotated to wrap the respective ends of the wire 57 on selected terminals to form the wire connection 17.

ALTERNATE EMBODIMENT Referring to FIG. 9, there are shown wire wrapping tools and 151 and insulation stripping assemblies 152 and 153 which may be used in place of the tools 20 and 21, and stripping assemblies 94 and 107 in the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 48. The apparatus of FIG. 9 differs from that previously described in that the insulation is severed by the stripping assemblies 152 and 153 whereas the insulation was severed by the tools 20 and 21 in the previously described apparatus. Also, the mechanism of FIG. 8 produces modified wrap connections, wherein insulated wire is wrapped around three or more corners of the terminals as shown by the electrical connection 19 in FIG. 3.

The tool 150 has a sleeve 155 slidably mounted on a spindle 156 and a shaft 157 slidably mounted within the spindle 156 such that the sleeve 155, spindle 156 and shaft 157 must rotate together. Similarly, the tool 151 has a sleeve 159 slidably mounted on a spindle 160 and a shaft 161 slidably mounted within the spindle 160 such that the sleeve 155, spindle 156 and shaft 157 must rotate together. As shown in FIG. 10, the shaft 157 has a telescoping element 163, which when the shaft 157 is in an intermediate position, has a slot 164 aligned with -a transverse slot 162 in the spindle 156 for receiving a wire 57. The shaft 161 of the tool 151 has a similar telescoping element 167 which, when the shaft 161 is in an intermediate position, has a transverse slot 168 aligned with a transverse slot 166 in the spindle 160. When the shaft 161 is in a lowered position, as shown in FIG. 9, the wire is gripped between the lower end of the shaft and the bottom surface of the slot 168 to hold the wire as the insulation is pulled from the end of the wire 57.

The sleeve 159 has a longitudinal groove 170 running to the end of the sleeve which mates with a longitudinal groove 171 in the spindle 160 such that when the sleeve 159 is lowered, the wire 57 is longitudinally captured within a passageway formed by the grooves 170 and 171 as shown in FIG. 10. The sleeve 159 has a slot 173 formed in the side thereof opposite to the groove 170 for receiving the free end of the wire 57 as the sleeve 159 is lowered. The sleeve 155 of the tool 150 contains a groove 175 and a slot 176 similar to the groove 170 and the slot 173 in the sleeve 159. Also, the spindle 156 has a groove 177 for mating with the groove 175 of the sleeve to capture the wire 57 within the tool 150.

The spindles 156 and 160 contain respective longitudinal recesses or bores 179 and 180 running from the slots 162 and 166 to the ends of the respective spindles. Cylindrical elements 181 and 182 are slidably supported within the respective recesses 179 and 180 and slots 162 and 166. As seen in FIG. 11, the cylindrical element 182 serves to hold the end of the wire 57 away from a terminal 16 which is received within the tool 151 preparatory to wrapping the end of the wire on the terminal.

Referring back to FIG. 9, the insulation stripping assembly 152 is mounted upon the wire feeding assembly 85 and the insulation stripping assembly 153 is mounted upon the extension 115 of the member 129 (FIG. 2), the stripping assembly 152 has a gide cavity 185 containing two slidable elements 186 and 187. An air cylinder (not shown) is connected to the element 186 at the point 188 for moving the elements 186 and 187 in the vertical direction. The elements 186 and 187 are connected by a sliding dovetail joint 189 such that when the elements 186 and 187 are moved to the bottom of the cavity 185, the element 187 slides along guide tracks 191 on the bottom of the cavity 185. Respective insulation cutting edges 192 and 193 are formed in the element 187 and the bottom of the cavity 185 for first severing the insulation on the wire 57 when the element 187 engages the bottom of the cavity and for partially stripping the insulation from the wire 57 as the element 187 slides on the tracks 191. The vacuum duct 111 communicates with the lower portion of the cavity 185 for removing the stripped insulation after the assembly 152 is raised to completely strip the insulation from the severed end of the wire 57 The stripping assembly 153 contains elements 196 and 197, similar to elements 186 and 187, slidably mounted within a cavity 198. An air cylinder (not shown) is connected to the element 196, for sliding the elements 196 and 197 in the vertical direction. The elements 196 and 197 are connected by a dovetail joint 200 such that when the element 197 engages guide tracks 202 in the bottom of the cavity 198, the element 197 slides along the tracks 202. When the element 197 moves into engagement with the guide tracks 202, a cutting edge 203 formed in the bottom of the cavity 198 and a cutting edge 204 (FIG. on the bottom of the element 197 cooperate to sever the insulation on the end of the wire 57 and partially strip the insulation from the end of a wire. The vacuum duct 112 communicates with the bottom of the cavity 198 for removing the stripped insulation from the assembly 153 after the assembly 153 is raised to completely strip the insulation from the end of the wire 57.

OPERATION Referring to FIGS. '9, 10 and 11, a cycle of operation of the tools 150 and 151 and the assemblies 152 and 153 is described. Initially, the tools 150 and 151 and the assemblies 152 and 153 are in the positions shown in FIG. 9. A wire 57 is fed through the passageway 86 by operation of the motor 88 and capstan wheel 90. The wire 57 feeds along the bottom of the cavity 185 below element 187 through the slot 162 of the spindle 156, slot 164 of the element 163, the slot 166 of the spindle 160, and slot 168 of the element 167, into the the bottom of the cavity 198 of the assembly 153.

Referring to FIG. 10, the sleeve 159 is lowered to capture the wire in a longitudinal passageway formed by the respective grooves 170 and 171 in the sleeve 159 and spindle 160. The shaft 161 is lowered to grip the wire between the bottom of the shaft 161 and the lower surface of the slot 168 in the telescoping element 167. The elements 196 and 197 are lowered whereupon the element 197 engages and slides along the tracks 202 and the cutting edges 203 and 204 cooperate to sever and partially strip the insulation from the end of the wire 57. The assembly 153 is raised on the extension 115 to completely strip the insulation from the end of the wire 57 whereupon the stripped insulation is removed through the vacuum duct 112 as shown in FIG. 11. The shaft 161 is then raised to its upper position to place the bared 8 end of the Wire completely within the slot 166 of the spindle 160.

The tool 150 is positioned over a selected terminal by the movement of the table 126 (FIG. 1) and terminal board 15 in X and Y coordinates. After the wire has been placed within the tool 151, the head 36 (FIG. 2) is moved in a horizontal direction with respect to the head 35 and the housing 120 (FIG. 1) is rotated about an axis through the tool 150 to position the tool 151 over another selected terminal. During the horizontal movement of the head 36, additional wire is pulled out of the wire feeding assembly past the capstan wheel which has been released. The wire is then severed by the cutter 102 and the end of the severed end of wire is stripped and placed completely within the slot 162 of the spindle 156 in the same manner as the wire is stripped and placed within the slot 166 of the spindle 160. The tools 150 and 151 are then simultaneously lowered over the selected terminals and rotated to wrap the ends of the wire onto the selected terminals and form a wire connection 19 (FIG. 3). When the tool 151 is lowered, the element 182 slides upward with the slot 166 of the spindle 160 to hold the bared end of wire away from the terminal. The element 181 in the tool 150 operates in a similar manner. It is noted that one or more turns of insulated wire are wound on the terminal by the tools 150 and 151. The tools 150 and 151 are then raised and returned to their initial positions to complete a cycle of operation.

The tools 150 and 151 may be operated in an alternate sequence to route the wire along a predetermined path. The tool 151 is first positioned over a selected terminal. After the leading end of wire 57 is stripped and placed with the tool 151, the tool 151 is lowered and rotated to wrap the leading end of wire on the selected terminal. After the tool 151 is raised from the terminal board, the table 126 and terminal board 15 are moved in X and Y coordinates and the housing is rotated as wire is fed to route the wire in a predetermined pattern. During the routing of wire, the outer sleeve 155 of the tool is lowered to feed wire down at the terminal board 15. The trailing end of wire is then stripped and wrapped on another terminal by the tool 150. The tool 150 is raised and the apparatus returned to its initial position in preparation for another cycle of operation.

It is to be understood that the above-described embodiments are simply illustrative of the invention and that other embodiments may be devised without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. For example, the tools herein described in an automatic wrapping apparatus may be incorporated in a manually operated device.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for wrapping the end of a wire on a terminal comprising:

an elongated member having (1) a longitudinal axis,

(2) means in one end thereof for receiving a terminal, and (3) a transverse slot for receiving and fully encompassing an end of a wire inserted therethrough, said slot having a width along the longitudinal axis sufiicient to receive a predetermined length of wire;

a sleeve slidably mounted on the member such that when the sleeve is in a first position with rspect to the member the slot is exposed to receive the wire and when the sleeve is in a second position with respect to the member, the wire is captured longitudinally between the sleeve and member with the wire extending from the one end of the member in position for the end of the wire to be wrapped on the terminal; and

means for placing the end of the wire wholly within the slot in the member.

2. An apparatus for wrapping the end of a wire on a terminal comprising:

inner, middle and outer elongated members having respective one ends, all three members concentrically and slidably mounted with respect to each other; said inner and middle members having respective transverse slots therethrough which can be aligned to receive the end of a wire inserted therethrough;

one of said inner and middle members having means for receiving a terminal;

means for moving the outer member with respect to the middle member to capture the wire between the middle and outer members such that the wire extends from the one end of the middle member in position for the end of the wire to be wrapped on the terminal; and

means for moving the inner member relative to the middle member away from the one end of the middle member to position the end of the wire fully within the slot of the middle member.

3. An apparatus for wrapping the end of a wire on a terminal, comprising:

an elongated member having (1) a longitudinal axis, (2) a transverse slot adjacent to one end thereof for receiving and fully encompassing an end of a wire inserted therethrough, and (3) a longitudinal recess extending from the one end thereof to the slot therethrough for receiving a terminal;

a sleeve slidably mounted on the member such that when the sleeve is in a first position with respect to the member, the slot is exposed to receive the wire and when the sleeve is in a second position with rspect to the member, the wire is captured longitudinally between the sleeve and the member with the wire extending from the one end of the member in position for the end of the wire to be wrapped on the terminal; and

a guide element movably mounted within the slot in the member for engaging the end of a terminal inserted in the recess to hold the end of the wire away from the terminal.

4. An apparatus for wrapping the end of a wire on a terminal, comprising:

inner, middle, and outer elongated members having respective one ends, all three members concentrically and slidably mounted with respect to each other;

said inner and middle members having respective transverse slots therethrough which can be aligned to receive the end of a wire inserted therethrough;

said middle member having a longitudinal recess extending from the one end thereof to the slot therethrough for receiving a terminal inserted therein;

means for moving the outer member with respect to the middle member to capture the wire between the middle and outer members such that the wire extends from the one end of the middle member in position to wrap the end of the wire on the terminal;

means for moving the inner member relative to and away from the one end of the middle member to position the end of the wire fully within the slot of the middle member; and

a guide element movably mounted within the slot of the middle member for engaging the end of a terminal inserted in the recess to hold the end of the wire away from the terminal.

5. An apparatus for wrapping the end of a wire on a terminal, comprising:

inner, middle and outer elongated members having respective one ends, all three members concentrically and slidably mounted with respect to each other;

said inner and middle members having respective transverse slots therethrough which can be aligned to receive the end of a wire inserted therethrough;

said middle member having a longitudinal recess in the one end thereof for receiving a terminal;

means for moving the outer member with respect to the middle member such that the one end of the outer member moves over the slot in the middle member from a first relative position Where the slot in the middle member is exposed to a second relative position where the one end of the outer member is adjacent to the one end of the middle member;

said middle and outer members being formed such that when the middle and outer members are moved to their second relative positions, an enclosed longitudinal passageway is formed between the middle and outer members extending from the one ends of the middle and outer members to the slot in the middle member for capturing the wire and guiding the end of the wire as it is wrapped on the terminal; and

means for moving the inner member relative to the middle member away from the one end of the middle member to position the end of the wire fully within the slot of the middle member.

6. An apparatus for wrapping the end of a wire on a terminal as defined in claim 5, wherein:

the longitudinal recess in the middle member extends from the one end thereof to the slot therein for receiving a terminal inserted therein, and which in addition includes:

a guide element movably mounted within the slot of the middle member for engaging the end of the terminal inserted through the recess to hold the end of the wire away from the terminal.

7. An apparatus as defined in claim 5, wherein:

the wire has an insulative covering;

the longitudinal passageway has a diameter less than the diameter of the insulative covering and slightly larger than the diameter of the wire;

an edge of the one end of the outer member and an edge of the slot in the middle member cooperate to sever the insulative covering on the end of the wire; and which includes:

means for gripping and pulling the severed insulative covering completely from the end of the wire.

8. An apparatus as defined in claim 6, wherein:

the wire has an insulative covering;

the longitudinal passageway has a diameter less than the diameter of the insulative covering and slightly larger than the diameter of the wire;

an edge of the one end of the outer member and an edge of the guide element cooperate to sever the insulative covering on the end of the wire; and which includes:

means for gripping and pulling the severed insulative covering completely from the end of the wire.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,585,010 2/1952 Hickman et al. l22 X 2,743,502 5/1956 Reck 140l22 X 2,914,261 11/1959 Barnes 2427.l7 1 3,023,484 3/1962 Arens et a1 2933 3,246,381 4/1966 Etchison et a1 29628 X THOMAS H. EAGER, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

